Rooster attack, but maybe he had a good reason? Next steps? How would you interpret his behavior?

[FunClucks]

I realise you want your family to enjoy particpating in chicken keeping but in all seriousness when one has a cockerel, which is what you have, it isn't wise to let your children near him.
Occasionally one gets a child that has a natural awareness that the feathery male creature isn't tame and they adjust their behaviour accordingly.
It seems often that children in western society in particular are brought up to view all other creatures as cute and pettable. I've seen parents holding babies in front of them making ridiculous coo cooing sounds while pushing their child at broody hens with chicks, at free range adult roosters and cockerels and even helping a child to put it's hand through cage bars in zoos.
It is your responsibility to ensure that your children learn that some creatures natural behaviour is to attack if they or their mates and offspring are considered under threat. Roosters belong in that class of needing some respect and caution. Very few are ever tame and this needs to be born in mind when dealing with them.

It's definitely been a learning experience for all of us. Speckle was an unexpected cockerel, and it's taken a while for me to even begin to understand "chicken language". I've appreciated your articles and posts on here - they've helped me get a lot closer to knowing what roosters are about, and how to best deal with them, and I've been teaching my family.

I have some ideas how to make our setup more child protective and rooster friendly, and hope to be able to implement them this year.